Most "Favorite" Hawaiian Restaurants Aren't Really Hawaiian

Hawaii.com's recent online poll reveals nothing but chains


Hawaii.com, which is owned by Gannett (USA Today and others), asked its million-plus members to vote for their favorite restaurants in the Hawaiian Islands. I'm not sure what constitutes a "member" of hawaii.com -- a site visitor perhaps. The poll is obviously skewed to favor Honolulu, specifically Waikiki, which has the most visitors, the most hotels and the most concentrated tourist-oriented dining options. Beyond that, the leader of every single category is part of a chain, usually with more locations off the Hawaiian Islands than on. Also note that not one of these chains is even headquartered in Hawaii. This makes me incredibly sad, because Hawaii has such rich and varied food offerings and unique local restaurants. I have to wonder: Is this an indictment of Hawaii or a function of the "members" of hawaii.com? With that caveat, below is the list:

• Favorite Steakhouse in Honolulu  - Ruth's Chris Steak House Waikiki, 226 Lewers St., Honolulu; 808-440-7910. One of 100 locations around the world and one of five in the Hawaiian Islands, two on Oahu. It is headquartered in Florida.
•  Favorite Hamburger in Honolulu - Cheeseburger in Paradise, 2500 Kalakaua Ave., Honolulu; 808-923-3731.  One of eight locations in Hawaii. Others are such mainland sites as Reno, Las Vegas, Key West and assorted locations in the Midwest and Northeast. It is headquartered in Illinois.
• Favorite Breakfast Spot in Waikiki - Duke's at the Outrigger Waikiki, 2335 Kalakaua Ave., Honolulu; 808-922-2268. Named after Duke Paoa Kahanamoku, a renowned surfer who competed in the Olympics for 20 years and also appeared in over 28 Hollywood movies, this is one of half a dozen Duke's. It is part of the TS Restaurant Group that also owns and/or operates Hula Grills, Cliffhouse, Jake's Del Mar, Keoki's Paradise, Kimo's, Lelani's and Sunnyside Lodge. It is headquartered in California.
• Favorite Restaurant with a View on Oahu  - Duke's at the Outrigger Waikiki, see above.
• Favorite Maui Restaurant with a View - Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., 889 Front St., Lahaina; 808-661-3111.California-based chain with 22 restaruarants in the US (including two in Colorado and one in the Mall of America in Minnesota), two in Mexico, two in Japan, two in the Philippines, one on Bali and one in Singapore. The chain is headquarted in California.
•  Favorite Maui Restaurant - Cheesburger in Paradise, 811 Front Street, Lahaina; 808-661-4855. See above. 
• Favorite Kauai Restaurant - Duke's Canoe Club at the Kauai Marriott, 3610 Rice St., Lihue; 808-246-9599. See above.
•  Favorite Big Island Restaurant - Roy's Waikoloa Bar & Grill, 250 Waikoloa Beach Dr., Waikoloa; 808- 886-4321. First introduced in Honolulu by James Beard award winner Chef Roy Yamaguchi, two dozen of Roy's Hawaiian fusion  are on the mainland. The chain is headquartered in California.
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Most "Favorite" Hawaiian Restaurants Aren't Really Hawaiian

Sugarbeet in the Snow

Opening night of First Bite Boulder at Longmont's Sugarbeet

It has been nearly two years since we first ate at Sugarbeet. The restaurant was still quite new and rather small, but the food was very good, and we have eaten there several times since. Sugarbeet has since expanded into adjacent space. Six of us drove through Saturday's snowstorm to a warm welcome and a cozy-as-ever restaurant. Mixing pared-down contemporary style without sacrificing genuine warmth is a trick that Sugarbeet has accomplished.

Even a small menu with just two or three choices for each of three courses takes some deliberation. Five of us ordered from the $26, three-course First Bite Boulder menu and one, a carnivore married to a vegetarian couldn't resist temptation and othered the venison entree from the regular menu. Each dish on the FBB menu came with a wine recommendation, and the $13 paired wine flight was an reasonable add-on.

Every dish was attractively presented, well balanced nicely flavored -- never overwhelming, but rather subtle and palate-pleasing. The only flaw was that the diced potatoes in both the chowder and the tenderloin curry were undercooked. Perhaps someone has noticed since Saturday remedied that.

First Bite Boulder Menu & More

Below, from the regular menu, White Bean/Roasted Fennel Hummus with triangles of excellent grilled flatbread. The smooth hummus was served in a cup lined with radicchio and topped with cucumber slices and herbs.The fennel was subtle.

The soupe du jour was a substantial bow of golden butternut squash/apple bisque, a fall classic in a soup bowl.

The salad combined fresh field greens, fennel, sliced beets, radishes, microgreens and toasted hazelnuts, here with the tarragon vinaigrette requested on the side. This salad from the FBB menu is on Sugarbeet's regular dinner menu too.

Clam chowder, the dreamy, creamy New England kind, was also on the FBB menu. The chowder was smooth and silky, without cornstarch or potato starch to bulk it up. Generous pieces or clam and applewood-smoked bacon gave the chowder robust and very complementary flavors.

From the regular menu came sliced Broken Arrow Ranch venison with lingonberry sauce, herb-roasted new potatoes and endive that had been halved and grilled. 

From the FBB menu, slow-roasted pork shoulder smothered with tangy/sweet mustard fig compote, French green lentils and braised baby spinach.

Mild curry with beef tenderloin, Yukon Gold potatoes, al dente green beans, roasted pepper and tomatoes surrounded a large mound of herb-sprinkled jasmine rice.

This tall tower of layered lightly fried eggplant, arugula, fresh mozzarella and a chunky sauce listed on the menu as "tomato chutney" with squiggles of balsamic reduction was picture pretty to begin. It did slide apart a bit as it was placed on the table, which made it less photogenic but didn't affect the well-balanced contrast of flavors, colors and textures.

The Kenwood Yulupa Cuvée Brut Cocktail was paired on the menu with the pumpkin spice cake, but I requested it with my torte. It was really delicious and would serve as well as an apéritif. It was "cocktailized" with a sugar cube infused with a shot of Angostura bitters on the bottom of the glass

All three of the desserts below came from the FBB menu. The second tall dish of the evening was this triple-layered pumpkin spice cake with whipped mascarpone, pecans and caramel sauce.

A slim slice of one of the richest, chocolatiest tortes I have ever eaten -- so rich, in fact, that the hazelnuts seemed like the light part! Two slim dark chocolate rolls, fresh strawberry, whippe cream and the obligatory bit of fresh mint made for an appealing presentation.

A very generous portion of delicious crisp-crusted blueberry cobbler topped with an equally generous scoop of cinnamon gelato.

Price check: On the regular dinner menu, "Beginnings," $7-$12; "Greens," $6-$9; "Mains," $19-$30. This underscores, again, what an exceptional value the $26 First Bite Boulder menu is for diners wishing to sample a restaurant's style and experience its ambiance.

Sugarbeet in the Snow

Bourdain to Denver. Hickenlooper to Introduce. Sparks to Fly?

Celeb chef/author/television Anthyony Bourdain comes of Denver on Wednseday

I feel as if I know Anthony Bourdain. I've read several of his books (Kitchen Confidential, A Cook's Tour and No Reservations) and I've traveled around the world vicariously with him on his Travel Channel series, "No Reservations." He's opinionated, snarky and yet has become increasingly empathetic about the lives and tribulations of people he has encountered. Along the way, he once visited Denver to promote A Cook's Tour and much to the irritation of local patriots and foodies, dismissed the Mile High City's food scene.

He's coming back for a one-night stand at the Buell Theater on Wednesday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m. As a preliminary welcome, Westword ran a contest subtitled "Make Anthony Bourdain Eat His Words."  Readers were invited to suggest three local restaurants that would make him change his snooty New York mind. The entries make for hilarious reading.

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper, quick-thinking and comfortable on stage, will introduce Bourdain. Hickenlooper is a former restaurateur; Bourdain is a former chef. The repartee should be interesting, but I'm betting that both of these smart, eloquent men will spar for a mo', revert to gracious collegialty. Tickets $35-$65 are still available on line from TicketMaster or by calling 866-461-6556

Bourdain to Denver. Hickenlooper to Introduce. Sparks to Fly?

2009 Taste of Elegance Competition Winners: Corey and Long

Judging a chefs' competition is a delicious but difficult job

 Once again, I was honored to be a judge at the "Taste of Elegance" chefs competition at the 2009 Denver International Wine Festival. As was the case last year, each competitor is given a bottle of red and a bottle of white in advance to taste and then create two dishes to pair with those wines -- wines that had previously place in September's Denver Wine Competition. We judges were charged with evaluating dishes based on presentation, tasted and food/wine compatibility to come up with the best overall chef and the most creative chef.

Chris Davies CEO of Wine Country International, which runs the festival, took the picture, below, of us judges just before we set off on our appointed tasting rounds. We discussed whether to stick together or split apart and decided to move from station to station in a cluster so that the chefs would only have to describe their dishes just once. Below, from left, Hosea Rosenberg of Jax Fish House, Boulder, and winner of last season's "Top Chef" honors, moi, Amanda Faison of 5280 magazine and Teresa Farney of the Colorado Springs Gazette. We did not look quite so perky after we had tasted two dishes from each chef and wines to match -- plus Belgian beers.   

Wine glasses ready for the sell-out crowd of 400 at the entrance to the festival, which this year moved to Mile High Station, a new events facility.

Before 6:00 p.m. when the public was allowed in, the competing chefs and their teams worked quickly and quietly to stage their two dishes.

 There was only so much I could do  at the same time -- tasting, evaluating, snapping quick pictures and scribbing notes in the hopes of matching images with restaurants and chefs. It was beyond my multi-tasting talents to do it all, so below are just some of the dishes we tasted. I can identify some but not all, so I won't label any. Just know that there was a lot of good food, a lot of well-thought-out plating and a lot of care displayed by "Taste of Elegance" chefs.

Attendees milled around, also tasting and sipping, often with considerably less restraint than those of us who had a job to do.

Let me tell you that the decision was difficult. There was a lot of good food preapred by local culinary talents. In the end, we selected Robert Corey of Sandoval's Kitchen, Denver as Most Creative Chef and Michael Long of Opus, Littleton as Best Chef. Jean-Luc Voegele of the Westin Tabor Center, Denver took the People's Choice award. Congratulations to all.

Last year, I managed to write a post immmediately after the festival, and you might want to read it for a backgrounder. Other than the venue and the number of chefs competing, the format was largely the same both years.

2009 Taste of Elegance Chefs

Jeff Bolton, Second Home, JW Marriott, Denver

Chad Clevenger, Mel's Bar and Grill, Greenwood Village

Austin Cueto, Restaurant Kevin Taylor, Denver

Robert Corey, Sandoval's Kitchen (overall Best Chef winner)

Eliza Goodwill, 221 South Oak, Telluride

David Harker, Meritage, Omni Interlocken, Broomfield

Daniel Joly, Mirabelle Restaurant, Avon/Beaver Creek

DeWayne Lieurance, 5280 Chef/Clandestine Chef

Michael Long, Opus Restaurant, Littleton (named Most Creative Chef)

David Olivieri, Farraday's Steakhouse, Isle of Capri Casino & Hotel, Black Hawk

Eric Riviera, LaLa's Wine Bar & Pizza, Denver

Eric Skokan, Black Cat Bistro, Boulder

Jeremy Thomas, Parisi's Italian Market & Deli and Firenze a Tavola, Denver

Jean-Luc Voegele, Westin Tabor Center, Denver (People's Choice winner)

Kelly Yepello, Yepello Chocolates & Confections, Steamboat Springs

2009 Taste of Elegance Competition Winners: Corey and Long

Just a Few News Notes

Denver International Wine Festival Report

Yesterday evening, I was honored to be a judge at the "Taste of Elegance" chef competition at the Denver International Wine Festival. My fellow judges (illustrious Coloradans indeed) were last season's "Top Chef" winner Hosea Rosenberg of Jax Fish House in Boulder, Amanda Faison of 5280 Magazine and Teresa Farney of the Colorado Springs Gazette. We ate and wine-paired two dishes from each of 14 leading chefs (plus a "bonus" third dish from Boulder's Restaurant 4580). Even a bite from each dish and a sip of each paired wine meant a lot of food and a lot of wine.

At the end of the competition, we judges met in a private room with video camera trained on us while we deliberated. We had very few differences of opinion -- a dish here, a dish there, perhaps a pairing. There were many excellent dishes that were carefully thought-out and beautifully presented. In the end, our top two chefs for overall excellence were Michael Long of Opus, Littleton, and for creativity, Robert Corey of Sandoval's Kitchen, Denver. I'll write another post with photos when I've digested, literally and figuratively, the evening's fab foods and wines.

Red Hot News: Kleinman Gone from Westin Westminster

I mentioned that 14 chefs competed in the "Taste of Elegance." Number 15 would have been Ian Kleinman, Colorado's captain of molecular gastronomy, except that is no longer at O's Steak and Seafood's in the Westin Westminster. I confirmed this morning and learned that Kurt Zuger, the executive chef, and Christoph Schöttle, who is the executive sous chef are filling the void. Again according to rumor, Kleinman is planning to open a restaurant on Larimer Square. Stay tuned.

Boulder Eatery News

Steve Abo, owner of Abo's Pizza, and a partner, whose name I can't recall have taken over the shuttered space that was occupied by Seven on Pearl (previously Seven Eurobistro) at 1035 Pearl Street, a bistro/bar just west of the Pearl Street Mall. Workers have been busy remodeling (right), so it ought to be opening soon...An Australian pub is reportedly going into the beguiling but challenging space on Broadway between Canyon and Araphahoe that, between sitting empty, has housed a variety of restaurant. The most recent was the short-lived Alexander & Livorio (or similar). With the recently closing of the Scotch Corner, it might fill a pub void on the street....I haven't previously reported on two restaurant that opened not long ago at The Peloton, the upscale condo development at 3601 Arapahoe. The Gindi Café is an an eco-practicing morning, noon and night eatery (i.e., it services breakfast, lunch, happy hour and small plates).The phone number is 720-206-5157. It joins Pizzeria Basta, a southern Italian restaurant with a wood-burning pizza oven and what it calls an "intelligent wine list." Sounds smart to me. Alas, I can't find Pizzeria Basta's phone number. The website is "under construction" and dexknows.com doesn't know...Agave Mexico Bistro & Tequila House opened on Wednesday at 2845 28th Street, Boulder; 303-444-2922. They're offering an extensive menu with organic and all-natural products and many gluten-free and vegetarian offerings. Until November 22, they're mixing their house margaritas for $4 as a grand opening special...Chef Fabio Flagiello is now is working with Bácaro Venetian Taverna owner/chef Anthony Justice, overhauling the menu and adding cred to the restaurant's middle name. Chef Flagiello trained in Italy and France and on this side of the pond, has run restaurants in California. While in Los Angeles, he was as a film, coaching actors with roles that required culinary technique, including Tony Shalhoub’s character, Primo, in the 1996 movie “Big Night.” He's a Boulder kind of buy, a triathlete and Iron Man competitor and interested in finding the balance between both great tasting and healthful meals. Bácaro is at 921 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-444-4888.

Just a Few News Notes

Restaurant Chefs Shortcut Thanksgiving Preparations

Colorado restaurants help at preparation time

As a young recent college grad with my own apartment, Thanksgiving was the first big holiday meal that I took off my mother's hands. My recipes were basic, and my pride at pulling it off palable. I've made a lot of turkeys since then. The images below show my 2008 turkey, a 24-pound heavyweight from Wisdom's Natural Poultry ready to be trussed and then ready to be carved. Over the years, I have developed these traditions:

• Always appetizers in the living room.
• Always a sitdown dinner, never a buffet, and always with fine china, sterling flatware and fine glassware.
• Always soup.
• Always a naturally raised turkey.
• Always stuffing -- but always a different stuffing.
• Always a green vegetable -- except this year when I might do a root vegetable medley or some sort.
• Always two kinds of fresh cranberries -- one from the Ocean Spray package and one other.
• Always a sweet potato dish (our friend Laura usually brings that) and mashed potatoes with gravy.
• Always desserts (pies and other wonders made by our friend Vivian).
• Always people we care about around the table -- the more the merrier (our record was 20, and we don't have a huge dining room; we moved out a lot of furniture, so the room was "all table"). And that the most important "always" of them all.

I love to prepare Thanksgiving dinner, but I know that everyone isn't a from-scratch cook. Some people like to go out for dinner, and numerous restaurants are open that day to accommodate them. Other people prefer to eat at home but don't care to actually make the meal. Here are a few Colorado restaurants offering Thanksgiving dinners that can be finished or just plated at home (order in advance, of course, and get address and directions when you call if you don't know where the restaurant is):

• Second Home, Denver - Thanksgiving Take Out, an a la carte selection of rotisserie turkey breast ($35) and also mashed potatoes, pan gravy, traditional stuffing, Parker House rolls, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, candied sweet potatoes, dozen deviled eggs, pumpkin pie and rustic apple pie ($15 each). Each dish is enough for about five people. Order by 12:00 noon, Monday, November 23 and pick up on Thanksgiving morning. Also, if you are cooking at home but find yourself short of something (because of extra guests, perhaps?), you can declare a "turkey emergency" and put in a last-minute order. 303-253-3000.
• Tony's Market, Denver and southern suburbs - While not a restaurant, the chefs at Tony's four markets and their affiliated catering company put out classic Thanksgiving dinners with three turkey choices: oven-roasted turkey serving 8+ ($159.99), a Cajun fried turkey also for 8+ for ($179.99) or turkey breast for 4 ($97.99) Included sides are turkey gravy, brandied cranberries, sage stuffing with sautéed celery and onions, Chantilly whipped potatoes, praline sweet potatoes, roasted baby winter vegetables with garlic butter and pull-apart rolls. For dessert, pumpkin or pecan pie with whipped cream. Order in person or online by Monday, November. 23, and pick up Tuesday after 2:00 p.m. or all day Wednesday at the store where you ordered. 
• Flagstaff House, Boulder - Chef Mark Monette's acclaimed Thanksgiving dinner with all-natural turkey and seven chef-prepared accompanying dishes, sauces, trimmings and desserts plus the Flagstaff House’s after-dinner coffee and tea is $178 for six people. See menu details here, and order (online if you wish) by Friday, November 20.  Pick up Monday through Wednesday after 1:00 p.m. 303-442-4640. 
• Restaurant 4580, Boulder - Entire "Take and Heat" Thanksgiving dinner ($20 per person) or just part of it (call for pricing) They'll prepare; you pick up on Thanksgiving morning. 303-448-1500.  
• Trattoria on Pearl, Boulder - Complete dinners for 6 people with turkey and all the trimmings for $100. They'll even deliver the meal to your door on November 25. Reserve by Monday, November 23. Call 303-544-0008.  
• Rick and Kelley's American Bistro, Edwards - Thanksgiving feast to go to serve 8-10 people for $80 including side dishes, just the turkey for $45. 970-926-3423.
   

Restaurant Chefs Shortcut Thanksgiving Preparations

Tony's Fresh Seafood a Louisiana Icon Since 1959

Family-owned seafood purveyor specializes in fresh local and regional specialties

The first stop after landing in Baton Rouge for a group of journalists on a recent farm-to-table media trip was Tony's Market & Deli is a family-owned local institution. On a late Thursday morning, the retail portion of Tony's sprawling complex was fairly quiet, but I was told that on weekends and especially during Lent and holidays, the lines run out the door for loyal customers with a crawfish craving, a catfish fix, a crabcake longing, a po-boy quest, a mufeletta hankering or a lust for fresh boudin and boudin balls.

I left my notebook somewhere en route, so I'm relying on other sources for this post. One of the sources is Tony's own website, from which, in the absence of my own notes, I've taken this history:

"Tony's Seafood traces its roots back to 1959 when Donaldsonville, Louisianam native Tony Pizzolato opened a small retail and wholesale produce business in the city of Baton Rouge. Realizing Baton Rougean's love for fresh seafood, Tony added crawfish, shrimp and crabs to his selection of produce. Soon he found the seafood outselling his produce.

"In 1972, Tony leased an abandoned service station on Plank Road next to Delmont Village Shopping Center. Through much of Tony's hard work and his insistance that the business only sell products of the finest quality, he, his wife Mary Lee, five sons; Bill, Joey, Mike, Cliff, Tad, and daughter Ceily turned what once was a small fruit stand into a thriving seafood business.

"By the early 1980's, long lines of eager seafood buyers were becoming a common sight. Lines grew even longer during the crawfish season, when Tony's Seafood had been known to sell as much as 50,000 pounds of live and boiled crawfish in one day.

"The business has expanded to include Louisiana Fish Fry Products, Ltd. These diverse products were created by Cajun recipes straight from the kitchen of Tony himself. Together, both businesses employ over 200 people.

"Today, Tony's Seafood still sells the absolute best live and boiled seafood in Baton Rouge and is the largest seafood market in the Gulf South. Their deli and delicious plate lunches have become local favorites."

Another source was Facebook, where I found these (unedited) comments on Tony's page posted by people who should know:

"Best Boudin Balls on Earth!!!"

"I love their corn and seasoned potatoes so much. Whenever I go there and get something, I always get one of those things because they are so good."

"Move & we will follow." "Luv da food & da service! Parking is horrible" 

"Very much an important Baton Rouge cultural icon! A real find for those who know it! And hey, those crowds on Fridays during lent say it all!!"

"Whenever I fly home to visit, Tony's Seafood is ALWAYS my first stop. I love the food and the wonderful family!!!!"

Fresh fish and shellfish are iced and ready to be purchased for home cooking.

A shelf laden with Tony's coatings, seasonings and mixes stands near the supermarket-style checkout counters.

Popular takeout items are posted on a board, though regulars seem to know what they want without ever reading the menu.

Behind the scenes in a huge (and expanding) processing and warehouse complex, Bill Pizzolato checks out an order of live crabs.

These enormous kettles turn out prodigious quantities of boiled crawfish.

After a factory tour, whose extend I've just hinted at in the images above, we had lunch from Tony's takeout menu. Gumbo, a classic Louisiana cross between a soup and a stew, is loaded with sausage, vegetables and either sausage or chicken.

 Fried seafood of all sorts (crabfingers, catfish strips, oysters, shrimp, drumettes and crawfish tails) with a pinquant sauce are stables of the bayou diet.

Boudin balls are addictive -- really addictive.

That's Bill in the green shirt in the middle. He has been in the business since he was a kid, coming in from the parochial school across the street to work. Without my notebook, I can't begin to ID the rest of the gang. If anyone can name the Pizzolatos, please do.

Tony's is located at 5215 Plank Road, Baton Rouge; 225-357-2127.

Tony's Fresh Seafood a Louisiana Icon Since 1959

Historic Nottoway Plantation Houses Contemporary Restaurant

Ramsay's Mansion Restaurant:  Stellar dining in the Louisiana countryside

New Orleans is one of the country's best-known dining Meccas, but on a recent farm-to-table visit to Louisiana, I found lots of other amazing food. A recent addition to the region's fine-dining scene is Ramsay's Mansion Restaurant at Nottoway, a magnificent plantation house that was renovated and refurbished earlier this year in time for its 150th anniversary.

Executive chef David Reyes was a city kid, raised in a rough Chicago neighborhood, but he has his Mexican family's farm-to-table catering business in his blood as well. His family planted corn by hand, raised cattle and made cheese, forging a direct connection from the growing and raising to the preparation and finally the consumption of food . Reyes himself graduated from Kendall College's well-regarded culinary program and interned at Puerto Vallarta resort and a Michelin-starred restaurant in Toulouse, France. Last year, back in the US, he won the grand prize and a $20,000 scholarship in the Kraft Foods 2008 Chefs of Grey Poupon Student Culinary Competition for his Dijon Surf and Turf in a New World Romesco Sauce recipe.

Once he was on board at Nottoway, he set his sights on some of the property's 38 acres for a kitchen garden, from which he has already been harvesting. The phrase "more than 30 herbs" also passed his lips. He is not yet 30 and has a combination of energy, ambition and culinary training that bode well for Ramsay's Mansion Restaraurant, especially if our group's seven-course dinner featuring Chef's selection is any indication. A lovely setting in a glassed in garden room looking out at the landscaped grounds (until it got dark), attentive service and wines that I wrote down somewhere but can't find made this an idyllic meal.

The first course was a single moist blue crab cake with mango sauce, a cap of smoked paprika aioli and a "feather" of dill from the small-plates list on the regular menu.

Butternut squash and ginger soup with a bit of Louisiana blue crab and a froth of coconut milk, garli,c chive and soy sauce was an excellent autumn soup.

If the soup said "fall," the caprese salad said "summer." This version is made with organically grown heirloom tomatoes and house-made mozzarella with cucumbers and basil  from the garden.

I had never heard of fish called "triple tail," but it is one of those species long recognized by saltwater sport fishermen that has only recently come into its own on the table. Once considered bycatch of the New Orleans shrimp fishery, it is now recognized for its similarity to sea bass. It was served in a light lobster bisque, Parmesan risotto and crisp salad of house-grown borage, fennel, beet sprouts, basil and arugula on top.



The word gnudi, a close relative of gnocchi, has now made it to southern Louisiana. The Mansion Restaurant's ricotta gnudi were soft pillows of dough made with house-made ricotta, perfecty cooked and loaded into a soup plate with fresh house-made sausage, sage, brown butter, a piquant sauce and a shaving of cheese (Parmesan, Pecorino Romano, other?) on top.

X marked the spot on the plate where two lamb chop bones crossed and Reyes's signature tandoori spiced lamb chops rested. The tender lamb was seasoned with an almost-Cajun spice mixture, roasted and served with a bit of roasted vegetable parfait layered with goard cheese and shallot confit.

Silk buttermilk pannacotta served as the underlayment for a coulis of fresh berries and oh-so-Southern pecans.

Price check:  At dinner, small plates, $8-$12; soups, $8-$19; salads, $8-$11; mains (including grilled items), $18-$32.

Nottoway is at 31025 Louisiana Highway 1 (off The Great River Road), White Castle (south of Baton Rouge);  225-545-2730.

Historic Nottoway Plantation Houses Contemporary Restaurant